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First timer Help advice

Replies: 6 - Last Post: Dec 9, 2012 3:28 PM Last Post By: aidil72

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1stimebackpacker

1stimebackpacker avatar

Dec 8, 2012 8:07 PM
Posts:  5

First timer Help advice

Hallo Everyone
I recently decided I have go away out from Europe for my holidays!

I Want see three countries in 21 day ( I know gonna be hard after wee bit of research only Indonesia u need at least 3 month for see most of them ) .well I'm getting to point
End of January 2013 got flights to bangkok 2 days then want to get to KL for another 2 day ( to be honest now really want to see malaysia just bits and pieces ) don't want travel long 6 hours journey coz time is crucial for me to get another fright to Bali Denpasar ! ( on few forums read Bali is overcrowded by tourist ) That way I want get from Bali to East java! They 8 days later going back for Thailand for week! .

Ok My question dear readers !

I should stay in Bali to explore the Island? Any advice about hotels/guesthouses/bed&breakfast on lower budget !.

How about transportation between Bali to ferry/bus/train Cost / time / etc... ( Indonesia lonely planet book was last time updated 2010 they must chance a bit ) .

It would be good for first timer to travel to east java? And if is worth is worth to see in 6 days! How to get there!
What about budget ?(zero in this currency ) drives me crazy don't want get screwed and pay for bottle of water £5 coz I'm foreign!

I appreciate any help
Excited and Scared Backpacker!
Thanks a lot guys!

aidil72

aidil72 avatar

Dec 9, 2012 3:05 AM
Posts:  18

1

First of all, yes, Bali is an overcrowded tourist spot, but if this is your first time visiting Indonesia, visiting Bali is a must. If only you have lots of time, I suggest you to do the islands hopping. You can visit lot of places with minimum budget. Just travel by bus or train from KL to Johor Bahru or Singapore. From both of the places you can travel by ferry to Batam island. From Batam you can find a cheap flight to Medan (south sumatera provinces) to see Lake Toba and other tourist spots. From there you just going south and visiting several cities and places along the way. Travel by bus is easy to do. From the southern most of the sumatera island, you can travel by ferry to Java island and from there you can go to the east, visiting Jakarta, Bandung, Yogyakarta, Mount Merapi, Solo, Malang, Surabaya, Mount Bromo, Banyuwangi and finally at the eastern most of Java island, you can continue your travel by ferry to Bali.
But if you only have no more than just a week, with minimum budget, I suggest you to stick around in Bali. It's a big island with lots of wonderful places to see from the sunny beaches to the mountain's view. Beside, you can easily find people who can speak english. It will help a lot for a first timer like you. There are lot of cheap motel in Bali especially around Kuta and Legian. Try the Poppies 2 road. Lots of cheap motel room there. If you still have more time, rather than visiting east java, maybe you can consider to visit Lombok island. Easier to reach from Bali.

1stimebackpacker

1stimebackpacker avatar

Dec 9, 2012 5:06 AM
Posts:  5

2

Thanks a lot? What about cost of the buses? Ferry?

aidil72

aidil72 avatar

Dec 9, 2012 5:27 AM
Posts:  18

3

The cost may vary for every buses and ferry. Depends on the places and distance. I don't have any info about the exact price, but for the buses, it may be between US$5 - US$30 depends on the distance and the type of the buses.
For the ferry it may be between US$10 up to US$25.
The available transport by ferry as far as I know
Singapore - Batam. Apprx. 1 hours
Johor Bahru - Batam. Apprx. 1.5 hours
Bakauheni (Southern Sumatra) - Merak (Western Java). Apprx. 1.5 hours
Ketapang (Eastern Java) - Gilimanuk (Western Bali). Apprx. 1 hours

1stimebackpacker

1stimebackpacker avatar

Dec 9, 2012 6:06 AM
Posts:  5

4

Thanks Few more questions
What is worth to see in Bali ?
More mountains and temple person even one day of scuba diving one day .?

north_boy

north_boy avatar

Dec 9, 2012 11:16 AM
Posts:  75

5

There is so much more to Bali than Kuta and Ubud. (Though I'd take Ubud 9 days out of 10 over Kuta -- so there's my bias).

Heading east along the south coast, not far north of Candidasa is the traditional village of Tenganan -- you might find it interesting, though I haven't been there in over 10 years, so it might be entirely commercial by now. In the same general area, you can heck out Tirtaganga to combine your interest in temples and mountains --you'll find awesome rice paddies in the area. It's very beautiful: easy to google, easy access.

For mountains, you can watch sunrise from the peak of Gunung Batur and possibly cook your breakfast in the superheated ground near an active vent. On the way, the little stop at Penelokan on the rim might give you an opportunity to meet some of the worst of the Indonesian character, but persevering can give you quite an adventure -- if you stay down at a lakeside village and use that as a stepping off point for a walk up the mountain for that sunrise.

While there, a visit to the village at the far end of the lake where they leave their dead lying on the ground to dessicate will give you an insight into the original culture of Bali -- in some ways it reminded me of a film by Fellini.

I think your pace is WAY too fast, though, to se anything other than transportation: if you want to spend that much time on the road, why not just rent a bus for a week and sit in it? Seriously, 21 days is about right to get a good sense of a smaller island like Bali, perhaps -- if you want to force the pace -- with a week in Lombok.

I don't want to sound patronizing, but as a first timer, I think your biggest mistake here is trying to cover too much ground in too little time.

aidil72

aidil72 avatar

Dec 9, 2012 3:28 PM
Posts:  18

6

I'm agree with what north_boy said. Don't try to visit too much places in such a short periodic time. You'll get exhausted and most of your time will spend mostly on roads.
Mountain, temples, scuba diving, beaches. You name it. Everything are there in Bali. But for the two biggest temples in Indonesia (Borobudur & Prambanan), they are located near Yogyakarta, Central Java. Mount Merapi is also there. Another tourist spot.
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